Our Review of Frankfurt Airport (FRA)

Table of contents: Our Review of Frankfurt Airport (FRA) Pros and Cons of Frankfurt Airport (FRA) Mini-Guide of the Airport (2' Guide) How we calculate On Time Performance Some Stats

Our Review of Frankfurt Airport (FRA)

Our Frankfurt Airport Review

At Plan Your Trips, we focus on providing travellers with clear, practical and reliable airport information. Our goal is to help passengers quickly understand what to expect before arriving at Frankfurt Airport, highlighting both its strengths and its weaknesses so that they can better plan their journey and avoid unnecessary surprises.

7.5

Overall Rating: 7.5 / 10

One of Europe’s most important hubs, offering excellent connectivity but with some operational challenges.

What Passengers Like

Outstanding international flight network.
Excellent rail connections directly from the airport.
Large selection of shops, restaurants and lounges.
Modern facilities and good signage in most areas.
Efficient connections for long-haul travel.

Most Common Complaints

Long security and passport control queues.
Large walking distances between gates.
Occasional delays in baggage delivery.
Complex layout for first-time visitors.
Mixed feedback regarding customer service.

Final Verdict

Frankfurt Airport remains one of Europe’s premier aviation hubs and is highly valued for its extensive route network, excellent rail links and modern infrastructure. However, passenger reviews consistently mention long immigration queues, security delays and lengthy walking distances, particularly during peak travel periods. Despite these drawbacks, the airport performs strongly as a global connection hub and generally delivers a reliable travel experience when passengers allow sufficient transfer time. For this reason, we award Frankfurt Airport a score of 7.5 out of 10. The airport excels in connectivity and facilities, but loses points due to recurring operational bottlenecks reported by travellers.

Pros and Cons of Frankfurt Airport (FRA)

✓ Pros

Location Frankfurt Airport is a major international airport serving the city of Frankfurt, Germany, located approximately 12 km southwest of the city centre.

Hub Airport Frankfurt Airport serves as a hub for AeroLogic, Lufthansa, Lufthansa CityLine and Lufthansa Cargo, while also acting as a focus city for Condor, Eurowings Discover, Eurowings and TUI fly Deutschland.

Modern Facilities Passengers can enjoy clean and modern amenities, including numerous shops, restaurants, lounges, health centres, conference facilities and premium VIP services suitable for both business and leisure travellers.

Transportation The airport offers excellent transport connections through two railway stations, one for long-distance services and another for regional trains. It is also well connected by highways, buses and taxis.

✕ Cons

Overcrowding Frankfurt Airport can become very busy during peak travel periods, leading to longer waiting times and a more stressful experience for some travellers.

Complicated Layout Due to its large size and multiple terminals, first-time visitors may find the airport difficult to navigate.

Luggage Pickup Baggage delivery can occasionally take longer than expected, potentially affecting onward travel plans, train connections or arranged pickups.

Immigration Queues During busy periods, passengers may experience significant waiting times at immigration and customs checkpoints.

Mini-Guide of the Airport (2' Guide)

Frankfurt Airport: 2-Minute Guide

Frankfurt Airport (FRA) is Germany’s busiest airport and one of the largest aviation hubs in Europe. Serving more than 60 million passengers annually, it offers connections to hundreds of destinations worldwide and acts as the primary hub for Lufthansa and its partner airlines.

🏢 Terminals

Frankfurt Airport currently operates through Terminal 1 and Terminal 2, while the new Terminal 3 is gradually expanding capacity. Terminal 1 is mainly used by Lufthansa and Star Alliance carriers, while Terminal 2 hosts several international airlines.

🚆 Getting To The City

The airport is located approximately 12 km from downtown Frankfurt. Travellers can reach the city centre in around 15 minutes using regional trains, S-Bahn services, taxis, ride-sharing services or airport shuttle buses.

🛍️ Facilities

Passengers can enjoy a wide selection of shops, restaurants, cafés, lounges, duty-free stores, business facilities, pharmacies, currency exchange services and family-friendly amenities throughout the terminals.

✈️ Connections

FRA is one of Europe’s most important transfer airports. Most connections are efficient, although passengers should allow extra time during peak periods due to security checks, immigration controls and long walking distances.

📶 Useful Services

Free Wi-Fi is available throughout the airport. Additional services include charging stations, baggage storage, VIP lounges, airport hotels, medical facilities and extensive information desks.

⏰ Before You Fly

For international flights, arriving at least three hours before departure is recommended. During holiday periods and busy travel seasons, security and passport control queues can become significantly longer.

Traveller Tip

Frankfurt Airport is exceptionally well connected and easy to reach thanks to its integrated railway stations. If you are transferring between flights, check your gate information early and allow plenty of time, as some gates can be a considerable distance apart. Planning ahead will help ensure a smooth and stress-free experience at one of Europe’s busiest airports.

How we calculate On Time Performance

On various pages of our website, you will encounter a metric widely utilized in aviation and other forms of transportation known as OTP (On Time Performance). We believe that providing this metric assists passengers in planning their trips and exploring alternatives before purchasing their flight tickets.

We calculate the On Time Performance for all flights and airlines, when we have enough data to do so. In certain instances, it may not be feasible to accurately compute the On-Time Performance for a specific flight or airline due to inadequate or non-representative data, which could result in misleading conclusions.

Our calculation of On Time Performance and delay information solely relies on arrival times. This approach is chosen over calculating departure delays, as we consider arrival punctuality to be of primary concern to passengers.

The On Time Performance displayed on our website is calculated as follows:

On Time: Flights that arrive within 15 minutes of their scheduled arrival time, or earlier. In the absence of data for a specific flight, we assume the flight arrives on time, to avoid penalizing airlines for data unavailability.
Moderate Delay: Flights that arrive with a delay of 15 to 30 minutes.
Significant Delay: Flights that arrive with a delay of 30 to 60 minutes.
Major Delay: Flights that arrive with a delay exceeding 60 minutes.
Average Delay: The average delay is calculated by considering flights that arrive early as having a delay of 0 minutes. Early arrivals do not contribute to reducing the average delay calculation